


Can I Buy You a Drink

by shoot_to_thrill



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Beard Kink, Identity Porn, M/M, Steve has a beard, Tony likes it, Undercover Missions, but not really, kind of?, still better than canon disguises, strangers AU, two superheroes walk into a bar
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-11
Updated: 2019-08-11
Packaged: 2020-08-18 21:54:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20198776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shoot_to_thrill/pseuds/shoot_to_thrill
Summary: "His hair was darker, a medium brown with the front part combed back away from his face and he had a full beard covering his impeccable jawline. If it wasn't for the fact that Tony had memorized every curve and angle of that beautiful face combined with the fact that he himself had made the very wedding band that rested on Steve's finger, Tony might have actually questioned if it really was the super soldier."OrThe one where Steve dyes his hair and grows his beard out and Tony being Tony decides to pick him up in a bar like they've never met.





	Can I Buy You a Drink

**Author's Note:**

> For my 'head' space on my Stony Bingo card.  
I have been toying around with this idea for a while after seeing Steve's beared look in the Infinity War promos. Its kind of a stretch for the square but his hair is on his head ok leave me alone.

It had been almost two weeks since Tony had last seen his husband. Steve was on an extended reconnaissance mission in a small town in southern France with Natasha. Tony hadn't heard from him more than once a day since. But then again, it was a stealth mission and too much contact could jeopardize their covers. So, Tony just had to deal with their daily check-ins as his only means of communication with the man.

Tony was beyond excited when the time came to pick Steve up from the airport. He was coming straight from a meeting, not bothering to so much as pull off his tie from a long day at the office. It was fairly late, a few hours past nightfall when he wandered into the small dive bar less than a block from the airport. They had long since learned not to meet at the airport. Each of them separately tended to draw a sizeable crowd, together it was damn near chaos. Being the absolute gem he was, Steve always felt bad for the airport staff for having to deal with their already crowded workspace becoming a zoo of paparazzi, fans, and well... less than fans. This had sort of become like a ritual for them. They travelled so often for one reason or another, that Tony could walk blindly throughout the bar and not run into a single piece of furniture, he could pick out the wallpaper in even the tiniest sliver of background in a photograph. Hell, he knew the bartender by name and in return he knew that Tony always liked to have an iced tea whenever he got here early but preferred to drink it out of a whiskey glass- partially because it made him feel less out of place in the bar and also because it held a familiar weight in his hand that he missed now that he was sober.

He frowned a little, looking around the bar and not seeing Steve anywhere. Steve's flight should have gotten in over 10 minutes ago. The genius double-checked his phone to confirm that Steve had, in fact, texted him to say that his plane had landed and he would see him soon, plane emoji included. Tony made his way over to the bar and took a seat on one of the well-worn barstools and was just about to text Steve to ask if he was on his way when he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to look down the bar to his right. Maybe it was the faint smell of his cologne or just the way he held himself, but Tony would recognize the man down the bar anywhere. Even still, Tony almost didn't recognize him. His hair was darker, a medium brown with the front part combed back away from his face and he had a full beard covering his impeccable jawline. If it wasn't for the fact that Tony had memorized every curve and angle of that beautiful face combined with the fact that he himself had made the very wedding band that rested on Steve's finger, Tony might have actually questioned if it really was the super soldier.

Tony slid gracefully of the barstool, his feet hitting the floor with only the soft creaking of the well-worn floor under the new weight. He made his way down the bar, pausing for a second and smirking to himself before climbing onto the barstool next to his husband trying to be as straight-faced and suave as possible. It wasn't an unfamiliar motion, he had slithered onto barstools confidently and casually before, namely barstool beside attractive strangers he was hoping to spend a few hours getting to know. This was something, however, that he had not done in years. Perhaps, even something he had grown out of. Nonetheless, he couldn't resist the small hint of a grin playing on his lips as he dragged his elbow into the bar top to ask "Come here often?"

Steve pivoted on his stool ever so slightly so he was almost facing Tony. "Often enough." The Captain answered coolly as if he saw right through his lover's intentions in the two seconds it took for him to take the man in as Tony spoke. " I travel fairly often and it's close to the airport." People often said that Tony was the smart one in the relationship, and while Steve would be the first to agree with that notion, it by no means meant that Steve was dumb. That was a fact that Tony had come to know quite well over the past few years. Steve played dumb often enough or was sometimes not the fastest when it came to pop culture references. But the man was clever... he noticed things; he was usually the first one to spot anomalies and usually had a very firm grasp on what was going on around him. So it was no surprise to Tony that Steve seamlessly picked up exactly what he was putting down and caught on to the game without missing a beat.

The genius gave a small nod, a smile playing on his lips. "Can I buy you drink?" 

"I have a drink." Steve made a show of holding his beer up off the counter a bit.

Tony pressed his tongue into the roof of his mouth and shook his head at Steve incredulously. "Okay fine," He tried again, "I'll ask what I really wanted to the first time. You're hot, wanna come home with me?"

Steve laughed heartily, hiding his grin behind the neck of his beer bottle as he took a swig. "That's very forward of you." He pursed his lips, eyeing the billionaire up and down before downing the rest of his beer. "But you're pretty cute, so okay." 

Tony grinned triumphantly and held out his hand. "Alright handsome, what do you say we get outta here?" A familiar warmth spread over him as Steve took his hand, slotting it perfectly around Tony's.

They were like teenagers on the way home. Every stoplight, filled with "Love you"s and "missed you"s and Steve leaning over to kiss Tony's neck and jawline sloppily. Once the car was in park, it only got worse. They were a mess of limbs and clothing being shed the whole way up to the penthouse, falling into bed. 

* * *

The sunlight was streaming into their bedroom, warming Steve's bare back from where he was laying, face buried in his pillow and a possessive arm was thrown over Tony. The small digital clock, a sleek glass one of Tony's own design, read that the time was 7:35 am. The silence of the apartment was broken by the tell-tale sound of size 8 Jimmy Choos clicking softly against the flooring echoing into the bedroom until the door was pushed open unceremoniously. Pepper was only half paying attention, tapping away on her phone with one hand, a large coffee in the other. "I sent you four emails and set it as an alert in your calendar and yet you still are not up and getting ready for the m- " She fell silent as she looked up from her phone. "Are you out of your damn mind?"

Tony grumbled softly as he peeled his eyes open, meeting the death glare he was receiving. He opened his mouth to question it but she steamrolled over him. "I mean, I knew you were kind of thick but I never thought you'd be so damn stupid. Steve is the best damn thing that has ever happened to you and you're gonna throw it away for some stupid one night stand. Honestly, what the hell were you thinking? He is the sweetest and most understanding person you could have possibly hoped for. "

Tony blinked at her in confusion before it finally clicked. He glanced over to the pillow next to him at the head of brown hair nestled into the pillow. Oh. He couldn't help the giggle that started to radiate from his chest and through his throat. His reaction earned him an even more annoyed reaction from Pepper who was about to start back in on him, by the look on her face until Steve grumbled and rolled over. He gave Tony a quizzical look as the genius curled himself up in laughter before spotting the woman by the door and giving her a small tired smile. "Oh, hey Pepper. Good Morning."

Pepper's face softened and flooded with relief. "Oh. Steve. Hi." She gave Tony another look, only making him laugh harder before sighing. "Tony I'll be in the car. You have ten minutes, please don't make us late." She turned around and marched back towards the elevator, the sound of her shoes echoing once more until the elevator doors clothes.

Tony spent a good half of his allotted time settling himself down and stifling his laughter long enough to explain what was so funny to his very confused husband. The remaining 5 minutes were dedicated to scrambling to rush through a shower and get dressed before running for the elevator. 

By the time he returned home, he found his captain in the communal kitchen going over some of the post-mission paperwork with Natasha. His beard was shaved clean off and it looked like he had attempted to wash some of the dye from his hair but it was still a little darker than usual, much less of a stark difference from his normal appearance than he had had a few hours earlier. Natasha, on the other hand, had her hair bleached out to an icy blonde, a bright contrast to her usual red. "You shaved the beard." Tony commented, sounding sadder about it than he meant to.

Steve looked up from the files spread across the table. "Oh, yeah. Itchy." He explained. "Sorry."

Tony shrugged. "Don't be. Not saying it was a bad look. I mean, obviously, I think you looked hot. But I always think you look hot so I may not be the best judge." He gave Steve a warm smile as he approached the pair of them to run his hand through Steve's hair and kiss his cheek. "Besides, Its kinda nice not having the competition for the sexy beards category." He joked winking at Steve. "When you're finished your paperwork, come find me and I'll show you just how hot I think you are beardless or otherwise." He called as he left the room. One perk of Steve being clean-shaven that he hadn't thought about until now, was how much clearer the red that spread over his cheeks was. But that was a thought that he kept to himself until much later in the day when they were alone and he could really see just how widespread its reach was.

**Author's Note:**

> Guys guess what? I didn’t actually fall off the face of the earth! 
> 
> Anyway, I am hoping to start posting and updating more regularly. Going to try setting aside some designated writing time to try and keep me on track.   
Feel free to send me any ideas or prompts to my tumblr to help keep me writing so I don’t break the habit.


End file.
